Fifty-Fifty - Freewood
by ohcrap-itsactuallymydivision
Summary: Two flights departed from Heathrow Airport: one in the morning and one in the early afternoon. Gavin never mentioned which one he'd be taking because he was so disorganised (as usual) and Geoff didn't really think it mattered. Well, that was until one of the two crashed and there was no way to find out which plane Gavin had taken.


_"__-In other news, British Airways flight 207 crashed on its flight from London Heathrow to LA Airport. So far, no survivors have been accounted for and we are awaiting information from-"_

Geoff forcefully jabbed at the remote, switching off the TV and focussing his attention on the silent phone in his hand; Gavin _had_ to call sometime. He usually did whenever he landed just to let Geoff know he had landed and he'd be home soon. Not this time though. So far, Geoff had heard nothing since yesterday evening when the Brit had AIMed him, informing him that it depended on how late he was running whether he would take British Airways flight 207 which left at 8:15, or British Airways flight 208 which left at 13:50.

As soon as Ryan had texted him to turn on the news, his instinct had told him that it _had_ to be something bad. And, as usual, his instinct was right. Sometimes he really hated it when he was right.

Griffon was busy in the kitchen trying to make phone calls to anyone who could have any information on Gavin's whereabouts. Dan's phone had gone straight to voicemail and so had Gavin's. She was currently trying to get through to Gavin's brother who finally answered after the fourth ring.

"'Sup Griffon, what can I do for you?" The British voice that answered the phone was cheery and welcoming, bringing a little bit of hope to the conversation.

"Hey George, you wouldn't happen to know which flight Gavin took back to America, would you?" Griffon asked, her voice rushed and obviously flustered. She had been worried about the Brit ever since Geoff turned on the news.

"Umm, I can't remember. He left pretty early today with Dan so I assume he took the morning one? Bloody idiot never actually told me." George relayed the information to Griffon who paled at the Brit's words.

"Thanks, George. I gotta go now but I'll call you back, okay?" Griffon hastily said, her worry for Gavin threatening to overwhelm her. She didn't want to be the one to tell his brother and there might not even be anything to worry about. Gavin could've taken the afternoon flight and everything could be fine.

"Er… Sure. Listen, is everythin-" Griffon promptly hung up on George and walked back into the kitchen where Geoff was sat cross-legged on the couch with what could have been his fourth beer in one hand and his absolutely fucking _useless _phone in the other.

"Geoff…" Griffon said solemnly as she stared into Geoff's cool blue eyes. "George said Gav didn't actually say which flight he was taking but he did leave quite early in the morning."

"...Fuck." Geoff muttered, tearing his gaze away from his wife's and staring at his phone in hope that he has some telekinetic power that will make Gavin call him. He nearly threw the device at the wall in shock when it started ringing, scaring the ever-living shit out of Geoff.

"Hello? Gav?" Geoff's voice was hopeful and he tried not to sound disappointed when it wasn't that familiar British accent that replied back to him. He vaguely noted Griffon retreat back upstairs but his attention was fully grasped by the phone he had held against his head in any hope it could be something about which flight Gavin took.

"Sorry, it's Ryan. Have you heard anything about Gavin?" He sounded honestly apologetic when he spoke. _'Jesus, he must be pretty broken up about this.'_ Geoff mused, chewing at his lip and absently drumming his fingers on his knee.

"Griffon called George who said Gavin left early this morning but didn't say which flight he was taking. He assumed it was the morning one but we don't know that for sure." Geoff informed, relaying all the new information he had acquired since Ryan's text. He heard Ryan cough and bring the phone away from his face but Geoff still heard the sniff on the other end of the line. "You okay, dude?"

"Yeah, I-I'm fine." Ryan tried to insist but even through the poor audio of the phone, Geoff could blatantly hear the way his voice wavered as he spoke.

"No, you're not." Geoff corrected Ryan. He knew there was no way Ryan could be okay when even Geoff was feeling panicked with worry. "You alright to drive?"

"Uhh, yeah. I haven't been drinking. At least not yet, anyway... Why?" Oh, well that was just like hanging a bright neon sign saying 'I'm not okay' above his head. There was no way Geoff was going to let Ryan stay on his own and drink himself into a stupor when he could be at the Ramsey's house where Geoff could take care of him.

"Because you're coming over." Geoff bluntly ordered.

"Wha-_why_?" He stammered, unsure of how to react to this command from his boss. Geoff could tell that he didn't want to impose or make a big fuss of him being worried. If anyone, Geoff should be the most torn up, he was the guy who _lived_ with Gavin, after all.

"Because you're obviously not okay and if- _when_ Gavin comes home, you'll be able to see him straight away." Geoff said, hoping to god that Ryan was going to comply with Geoff's orders. "And if you don't, I'm gonna fire you." Geoff promptly hung up. Any other time his threat would have been funny if the situation hadn't been so serious.

Geoff couldn't have been more thankful when he heard a quiet knock on the front door ten minutes later and when he opened it, Ryan was stood there with his head hung slightly and his shoulders drooping. If Geoff was honest, he looked like absolute shit. He looked exactly like Geoff felt. His eyes were red, his hair was dishevelled and the expression on his face couldn't have looked more worried and tired if he tried.

"Come inside before you freeze your ass off, moron." Geoff said, stepping aside to let the other Achievement Hunter into the house before shutting the door once again. Geoff went back to the sitting room and resumed his place in the corner of the couch. Ryan, however, followed Geoff into the lounge but hovered near the doorway, unsure of where to sit or what to do with himself.

"Dude, just sit down anywhere. You're probably shattered. I know I am." Geoff said, watching as Ryan sat down in one of the armchairs near Geoff's corner of the sofa.

"Why am I here, again?" Ryan asked, his voice quiet yet curious as he looked at Geoff with inquisitive eyes.

"Because I'm worried about Gavin and you're worried about Gavin so we should be worried about Gavin together." Geoff said as jokingly as he could muster but Ryan awaited a proper answer (assuming he was sober enough to think of one) so Geoff sighed and gave him the best excuse he could conjure with the amount of alcohol in his system. "Because I know how much he means to you and I don't want you doing anything stupid, hurting yourself or getting wound up all on your own."

"Well, I work with him and we're friends, sure. But that's it." Ryan tried to insist that he had the wrong idea but Geoff, as usual, was having none of it. Did Ryan think he was an idiot? How could he _not_ see the small smiles and hopeful eyes every time he looked at Gavin. It was actually quite endearing to see but Geoff knew that Ryan would be so much happier if he just admitted it (to himself and to Gavin).

"Dude, don't even _begin_ to deny it. The others may not have noticed but I sure as hell have." Geoff stared at Ryan with a comforting and knowing gaze, smirking at the embarrassed blush on Ryan's face. "I didn't tell you I knew because I _thought _you'd have the balls to tell him yourself so when he comes home, you better fuckin' make out with him or something." This elicited a light chuckle from Ryan, finally taking his mind off of all the worry and panic of Gavin and the crashed plane. There was still a fifty-fifty chance of him being totally fine so maybe he could stop worrying for now.

At some point, Geoff had drifted off and Ryan was in a state of consciousness where he wasn't going to fall asleep but he was perfectly comfortable with where he was. He was curled up on the huge armchair hugging his knees with his head rested on his forearms, a warm blanket wrapped around him.

He lifted his head for a moment to check the time. 10:37. It must have been about two hours ago he got here, one hour ago Geoff had fallen asleep and forty minutes ago Griffon had come downstairs to check on them both but instead, placed a blanket over the sleeping Geoff and handed one to Ryan, saying that there are drinks in the fridge, he knows where the bathroom is and if he needs anything to just wake Geoff up.

Ryan knew he probably wasn't going to fall asleep. He was too caught up in his worry for Gavin that he was either going to pass out from exhaustion or he would just stay awake until someone else in the Ramsey house stirs. Ryan tugged the blanket to cover himself better and closed his eyes, resting his forehead on his forearms again. Maybe if he stayed like this then he would fall asleep eventually and it would stop him worrying for a bit. And maybe, just maybe, when he wakes up, Gavin will be back and it'll all be okay.

The suddenness of knocking on the front door woke Geoff up so fast that he rolled off the couch and onto the floor with a dull thud. When the tapping persisted, Geoff dragged himself to his feet, wincing as he accidentally kicked an empty beer bottle for fear of being too noisy and waking Ryan who was still fast asleep in the arm chair. But he continued to tiptoe across the lounge and into the hallway. His brain was still half asleep so the person at the front door could be the Queen of England for all he knew.

However, when he cracked open the door and was greeted with the sight of a scruffy British idiot stood outside,holding a backpack with one arm and a suitcase in the other. The tension that had resided on Geoff's shoulders ever since he turned on the news seeped out and he breathed a sigh of relief.

"'Sup Geoff? Sorry I'm la-_mmph_." Gavin was cut off when Geoff threw himself at the Brit, hugging him tightly and knocking his suitcase and backpack to the floor. Gavin was thoroughly confused; usually he got a "welcome back, asshole" or a "damn, you're back already?" but Geoff was literally attached to him and Gavin had no idea what he'd done.

"_Geoff! _What the bloody hell?!" He was barely able to splutter out these few words as he wriggled out of the older man's grasp.

"Y'know flight 207? The morning flight you were gonna take?" Geoff spoke quickly yet quietly and any remnants of lethargicness from the very little amount of sleep he got had practically disappeared. The man seemed to be literally fuelled on adrenaline as his euphoria of seeing Gavin didn't show any signs of wearing off any time soon.

"...Yeah, what about it?" Gavin replied, stifling a yawn as he spoke. Unlike Geoff, he was absolutely shattered from the day's events.

"It fucking _crashed_ in the middle of the ocean." Geoff stated bluntly. Gavin now understood why Geoff was so pleased to see him; he literally had a fifty-fifty chance of being alive and Geoff had no way of knowing if the odds were in their favour or not. By the sounds of things Geoff must've been terrified.

"Jesus Christ, I'm glad I took the afternoon flight, then. I was actually gonna take the morning one but it turns out that me and Dan forgot to film one last thing for a video so we had to do that and I missed the first plane." Gavin continued to speak and Geoff was content with simply listening. "So we turned off our phones for the recording 'cause we were tight on time anyway and I just never bothered to turn mine back on 'cause I went straight to the airport from there."

"I swear to fucking god, Gavin. Next time, _keep your fucking phone on_." Geoff ordered, hoping to high hell that the idiot would actually take his advice. There was no way he wanted to go through an ordeal like this again. "Let's get your stupid ass inside, then." Gavin was quick in shoving his suitcase into Geoff's arms and taking the infinitely lighter backpack for himself with a light chuckle as the pair of them walked into the hallway. "Oh, Gav, one more thing I forgot to mention. There's someone asleep in the lounge who was even more worried than me and Griffon were."

Gavin dropped his bag in the hallway and made his way silently into the lounge, a fond smile creeping onto his face when he saw the sleeping form of Ryan curled up in the armchair, a blanket covering his body. It was an adorable sight to see; he had his knees pulled up to his chest and his head leant against them. He looked peaceful in sleep.

But then he looked closer and he could easily see the slightly faded redness around Ryan's eyes and for Gavin, that was more than enough to tell him that the older Achievement Hunter had been worried sick. If the clenching in Gavin's chest was enough for him to know how bad he felt for Ryan then the lump in his throat was the sign that gave it away.

When Gavin broke himself out of his musings and looked at the slightly hungover Geoff who was still stood in the doorway, Gavin's expression had shifted from shocked at the news of the crashed plane to a mixture of emotions. Geoff couldn't pinpoint most of them but one of the most evident ones was definitely guilt; of course Gavin would feel bad for not having his phone on or contacting anyone. Especially after seeing how upset Ryan was...

"Was he really that worried?" Gavin asked with a small, timid voice. Geoff said nothing in reply but nodded sadly, Gavin could read in the look on his face how much Ryan actually was worked up over the whole ordeal.

Without making a sound, Gavin had walked over to the armchair Ryan was situated in and stood next to it. Gently resting his hand on Ryan's shoulder, Gavin nudged him to wake up the sleeping gamer. _Lucky Ryan's a light sleeper_, thought Gavin as he watched Ryan rouse himself from his sleep. When he lifted his head from where he'd been resting it on his knees, an unstoppable smile of happiness mixed with a tiny bit of disbelief worked its way onto his face and he stared at the younger man.

Gavin's heart did a backflip when he saw the relieved and thankful shine that seemed to illuminate Ryan's bright blue eyes as they grinned at each other. He wasn't given much time to admire the view, however, because after a second of Ryan's internal monologue questioning whether this was for real (then confirming that yes, Gavin was actually back), Ryan had grabbed Gavin by the shirt and tugged him down just enough so he could fling his arms around the Brit's neck in a tight hug. It was comforting to be held so protectively by Ryan's strong arms. No words needed to be spoken and Gavin relished in the feeling of protection and safety while Ryan took comfort in knowing that Gavin was okay.

After a few long minutes of simply enjoying each other's presence, Geoff had silently made his leave (not that the other two had even remembered he was there in the first place) and Ryan slackened his hold just enough for Gavin to pull back. The Brit swept his gaze over Ryan's features, glad he was finally back in America after the two weeks he was away for, and smiled warmly.

The older man only had to lean his head forward a few inches to capture Gavin's lips in a gentle kiss. It was soft and sweet yet only lasted a few seconds before they were breaking apart. To Gavin, it didn't really matter how long it lasted; just the simple act of the kiss was enough for him. It meant that there was _definitely_ more where that came from but for now, they were both tired and worn out and Ryan needed comfort, and Gavin was more than happy to provide that for him.

Ryan managed to tug Gavin around the chair so he was on his lap, curled up with his head leaning against Ryan's chest. The older man pulled the blanket from around himself and draped it over Gavin's body, keeping them both warm. Gavin hummed contentedly when Ryan wrapped one arm around the Brit and let the other hand gently run through Gavin's soft hair.

"I'm so fucking glad you're okay, Gavin." Ryan confessed quietly to the man now snuggled against his chest, spreading warmth through the both of them.

"I probably should've kept my phone on, to be honest. The only reason I had it off and I missed the first plane was 'cause I was doing some last-minute filming with Dan that we kinda forgot to do earlier." Gavin admitted, his voice sleepy as he fought to keep his eyes open. "I'm just pleased Geoff didn't let you do anything dumb."

"Yeah, me too." Ryan said, his soothing deep voice almost putting Gavin to sleep. "For once I'm actually _happy_ to hear about you and your atrocious time-keeping and organisation skills."

"I guess I'm just lucky." Gavin slowly trailed off as he spoke, letting himself fall asleep in Ryan's arms. He knew how much the older gamer needed the comfort and Gavin was happy to stay with him for as long as he needs. Barely seconds passed before Ryan spoke again.

"You've fallen asleep, haven't you?" Ryan asked to the otherwise empty room. Soft breathing from Gavin was the only answer Ryan got before he decided that he should probably go back to sleep as well. It was probably about midnight and they were both shattered from the day's events (Gavin was exhausted from the flight and Ryan was worn out from so much worrying).

Ryan knew that he was going to fall asleep any second and there was a chance his memory could falter what with him being so tired. But he didn't doubt for one second that he was going to forget how good it felt to be in that comfy chair, cuddling with Gavin; he didn't ever want to let him go. Ryan was going to be there for Gavin. Next time something bad happens (hopefully not as traumatic as today's events could have been), he wasn't going to let any harm come to Gavin.

He never wanted to feel as guilty as he had only a few hours prior. He didn't know if Gavin was okay and he felt awful for not being able to protect him. How could he _not_ want to keep Gavin from trouble? Ryan loved everything about the man and there was no way he was going to let harm come to Gavin if there was anything he could do about it.

At least now, with Gavin curled up snug in his arms, he was able to look after him. And that was all that really mattered for the moment. It was much easier to fall asleep now he knew that the one person he cared about more than anything in the world was safe. So Ryan finally closed his eyes and allowed sleep to draw him in once more.


End file.
